Returning to the small mountain village of '86, intelligence updated daily.

Inside the warehouse, three men stood in different directions.

Zhou Shijie, no longer indifferent, turned his gaze back to the two of them.

He heard it.

Zhou Rui also knew that his second uncle had heard it.

But it doesn't matter. He knows his second uncle's personality. Although he is impulsive and lacks confidence, he is definitely a respectable member of the Zhou family.

They won't do anything to harm their own family.

This is why he had just asked his second uncle to carry the Gastrodia elata extract. Zhou Shijie did not disappoint others, protecting the mountain goods in the basket and preventing the neighbors from touching them.

Even after arriving home, he would not put down his chair without Zhou Rui's signal.

Therefore, although Zhou Rui said he was discussing it with his father in a low voice, his second uncle actually heard it as well.

Zhou Shiwei slowly exhaled and said in a calm tone:

"Then it's decided. I happen to know someone who's involved in this business. Once we've raised the money, we'll go find him."

In this era, gun prices on the underground black market vary, and the most important factor is the distribution channel!

With good connections, you can buy a hunting rifle for a hundred or two, and maybe even get your hands on a rifle!

But if you don't have connections, it's quite possible to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

Over the years, Zhou Shiwei has accumulated a lot of connections. When it comes to this kind of thing, Zhou Rui can't compare to his father, even if he remembers the channels for doing this kind of thing.

But he's still under 20 years old. If he had such connections, his father and second uncle would be suspicious.

"Dad, I want to sell those Gastrodia elata and Gastrodia elata king through Uncle Zhao. He has many connections, so maybe we can get a better price."

Zhou Rui spoke to his father about it, as he trusted Zhao Jianjun a lot when it came to doing business.

However, his father and family members clearly did not have the same connections and resources in this regard as Zhao Jiaguang.

Zhou Shiwei nodded, agreeing with Zhou Rui's idea.

The Zhao family, especially Li Lan, took good care of our family. It was much better to ask them to open up a path for us than to run into obstacles in the town and county.

"You'll have to handle this yourself. In the meantime, I'll contact the sales channels for that stuff and ask about the price first."

The matter was settled, very decisively.

Because both Zhou Rui and Zhou Shiwei knew that two hundred yuan wouldn't make them rich; only by holding onto the truth could they gradually gain a foothold.

Just then, Zhou Shijie, who had been silent and pretending not to hear, spoke up.

"Brother, nephew, whatever you want to do, I'll do it with you."

"I'm not as smart as you guys, but I also want things to be better for our family, and for Grandpa to stay healthy."

Zhou Shijie didn't make any grand pronouncements, nor did he question the two's decision; instead, he expressed his own attitude.

He would do whatever his elder brother and nephew asked him to do, without hesitation.

Inside the warehouse, the three exchanged glances and smiled in unison.

……

As dusk approached and night fell in the countryside, the croaking of frogs and the chirping of cicadas brought tranquility to the village, which had been busy all day.

Inside the Zhou family's mud-brick house, the kerosene lamp was finally replaced with an electric light.

The light was bright, and it brought smiles to the faces of the whole family.

Tonight's dinner is stir-fried yam, wild mushroom stew, and bone broth.

It was served with fermented bean curd; a very simple meal, yet filling.

Grandpa sat in the main seat, with two boiled eggs that Zeng Jiamei had just peeled in front of him.

"Xiaomei, don't just give it to me, give some to the children too."

Zhou Yong'an looked at the eggs in front of him, picked them up and put them down again. Finally, he picked one up and handed it to Zhou Ming's bowl, but the latter kept backing away.

"Grandpa, I don't like boiled eggs, give them to my brother."

Seeing this, Zhou Yong'an offered a word of advice.

"Silly boy, you're growing."

Zhou Ming chuckled, "Grandpa, I'm a grown-up now, I really don't like to eat this."

Seeing that he couldn't give them away, Zhou Yong'an shakily handed the eggs to Zhou Rui.

Zhou Rui did not refuse, because he knew that if no one accepted, the old man would not be happy.

Sure enough, a smile appeared on Zhou Yongyuan's thin face when he saw Zhou Rui accept the tender white egg.

Zeng Jiamei then said in a slightly exaggerated tone:

"The old man is biased; he only gives to the kids. I want to eat too."

She didn't really want to eat it.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yong'an was about to pick up another egg from the bowl and hand it over when Zhou Shiwei spoke up.

"She's such a grown woman, yet she's still fighting with a child."

As Zhou Shiwei spoke, he picked out a pork rib with meat still attached from the bone broth and handed it to Zeng Jiamei's bowl.

When Zeng Jiamei saw that the old man was really going to hand it to her, she quickly protected the bowl and moved closer to Zhou Shiwei.

"Grandpa, I was wrong, please eat."

After saying that, she saw the spare ribs that had just been picked up from her bowl, winked at Zhou Shiwei, and then opened her mouth and ate them in big mouthfuls.

Grandma Meng Dan watched this scene with a kind expression. There were also two eggs in her bowl, which Zeng Jiamei had peeled.

She was slightly younger than her grandfather and had more energy.

"Two eggs, this old woman can't finish them all. Laidi, help me eat one to help me digest."

After saying that, Meng Dan didn't care whether her second aunt Yang Laidi agreed or not, and directly picked up an egg and put it into Yang Laidi's bowl.

Yang Laidi glanced at Zhou Shijie, somewhat at a loss.

She was an indecisive person, and faced with the elder's care, she didn't know whether to accept it or not.

Zhou Shijie was eating in silence when he caught a pleading look in his wife's eyes. He picked up a piece of stir-fried yam and put it in his bowl.

"Just eat when your mom tells you to."

Yang Laidi received the affirmation and looked at her mother-in-law with gratitude, but still did not speak. She simply used chopsticks to carefully peel the white egg white.

Grandpa didn't force the last remaining egg to be given away.

While eating his eggs, Zhou Rui kept track of the time. When he felt that the time was almost up, he immediately put down his chopsticks and headed to the stove.

On the stove, a medicinal herb, astragalus, was simmering in a pot.

This is something Zhou Ruiji keeps in mind.

Looking at the enticing golden-yellow medicinal soup, Zhou Rui carefully took out a bowl and removed the pot from the stove.

Zhou Rui filled a bowl to the brim with soup, then carried it into the inner room, holding the bottom and rim of the bowl with both hands.

"Grandpa, the soup is here!"

At the dinner table, Zhou Rui carefully placed the medicinal soup down.

The golden-yellow medicinal soup appeared even more translucent under the electric light.

Zhou Rui didn't cook too much at once, but rather little by little, so that Grandpa could absorb it.

Zhou Yong'an spoke with a hint of reproach in his voice.

"What is this? Herbs? Why waste it?"

"It would be great to sell it and get something in return."

It's not so much a blame, but rather a reflection of the elderly person's frugal and thrifty habits.

But despite his words, he still picked up the spoon and shakily scooped up a spoonful to put in his mouth.

He didn't dampen the spirits of his descendants, nor did he spoil their fun.

Seeing this, Zeng Jiamei quickly put down her chopsticks and took the spoon from Zhou Yong'an.

Zhou Yong'an was about to stop them, but Zeng Jiamei blocked him.

After blowing on it to make sure it wasn't too hot, Zeng Jiamei fed the old man a spoonful of the medicinal soup.

"Grandpa, your children are doing great, you can enjoy your retirement from now on."

After saying that, she took out a candy wrapper from her pocket, as if showing off.

"Look, the child still remembers that Mommy likes to eat milk candy—"